'Wasn't That Special' Season Four Bonus Material
As the Wasn’t That Special co-hosts watch each season of Saturday Night Live, they compare notes on each episode, chatting back and forth about both popular and long-forgotten sketches. Some of the topics they discuss make it to the final podcast; others are left on the cutting-room floor.
But for those of you who join at the Executive Producer level, you will have access to Christian and Scot’s behind-the-scenes notes, as well as bonus materials the co-hosts used to prepare for the episode.
Below is the Season Four bonus notes section, with the clips coming next week.
So please help keep the podcast advertisement-free and upgrade to the Executive Producer level, which will keep these emails coming in the future.
Episode One: The Rolling Stones
Scot: The show AVERAGES a 39 share this season. Explosion. No Michael O’Donoghue, no Marilyn Miller. Walter Williams (Mr. Bill) added as a writer. Laraine on Keith Richards: "It's nice to be standing and working next to a dead person." Richards had two appearances in sketches cut - no one trusted him.
Christian: Rolling Stones hosting was much better in theory than in practice.
Throwback NBC song and orchestra --- Garrett sings, girls back-up.
Scot: Oh, this is out-of-step for the show and a season debut and a Stones episode, but I love it so much.
Nerds -- Aykroyd as buttcrack-showing repairman.
Christian: Murray sings and actually manages to sneak some Nick the Lounge Singer into the Todd character - I think the crowd is a little stunned.
Scot: The crowd seems oddly out of it - until Aykroyd defies censors by letting pants hang down beneath his crack and stores pencil there.
Olympia - Wood & Watts are customers -Pete (Belushi) is in Greece to pick up $$.
Christian: Yeah, these are dead.
Scot: Garrett in drag for no particular reason -- this one clangs --- there's no end -- what is up with Pete?
Rolling Stones "Beast of Burden" --- "Respectable" --- "Shattered"
Scot: Jagger's voice is completely blown --- too much rehearsal and partying -- peaking too soon.
Schiller film "Sushi By the Pool" Quake at Hollywood party interrupts negotiation.
Christian: This is 1000% the inspiration for the pool scene in Boogie Nights, down to the use of "Got to Give it Up."
Scot: Fine, I guess.
Network Battle of the Ts and As
Christian: 15 year old boys in the 2020s even know you can't do this.
Scot: Nope nope nope not happening today.
Danger Probe! -- possible torture of mime and Hare Krishna
Christian: The pitch for this sketch: "What if we took a bunch of people who have nothing in common in the same room and had them say a bunch of things that weren't funny? Comedy magic!"
Scot: Filling time.
Episode Two: Fred Willard
Christian: Hurts to see such a bad episode with a host that should be so great.
Scot: Every male cast member's hair looks awful.
Two Guys Who Are Lawyers law firm commercial
Scot: Predicts the Two Men and a Truck model.
Christian: "How many times has this happened to you?"
Caller looking for "David" in middle of night --- David is Laraine's ex-boyfriend -- Willard in bed --- David calls, they hit it off.
Christian: What?
Scot: A confused piece of writing here.
On the Spot --- Mainway provides food for schoolchildren.
Christian: There is no new gear for these.
Scot: Aykroyd seems off all sketch.
Farbers -- Mrs. Farber talking to Mom on phone
Christian: Have there been more Farbers or Coneheads? An annoying person talking without jokes is just an annoying person talking.
Scot: Why do this? Why is there a Farber sketch without Belushi???
Belushi as Moab --- whoch god to pray to? --- trying to get out of killing son.
Christian: Um.
Scot: Weirdly without energy for E2 of a new season.
Scotch Boutique --- only sells tape
Scot: Novello wrote this --- meloncholic, serene, I ... think I should like it but not certain I do.
Christian: Olympia Cafe but with Scotch tape? Is this a better or worse business plan than starting an SNL podcast?
Devo - “Jocko Homo”
Christian: This is pre-MTV. Where would the American public see anything like this outside of SNL?
Episode Three: Frank Zappa
Christian: The opposite of the previous episode - a decent show with a bad host. Zappa was actually anti-drug and alcohol, so the cast hated him. Zappa pulls off the impressive combo of being both bad and smug.
Scot: Brian McConnachie as writer? --- not as terrible as expected, Zappa actually isn't in a ton of stuff anyway. Zappa had awful dress reheasal and decided to find humor in obviously reading cue cards in live show ---- Lorne was really upset.
Zappa reads cue cards, plays "Dancing Fool."
Christian: Zappa is "anti-entertainment" - in all senses.
Belushi in prison under home stairs playing harmonica -- Garrett is locked in closet -- upstairs prisoner riots -- kicks them out for being rude.
Christian: Laraine is a skeleton - it's not funny, but it's clever. As if McSweeney's was a sketch.
Scot: It's not hilarious but I like the concept so much.